VOA慢速英语2009-AMERICAN MOSAIC - A Colorful Exhibit Tells About

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC¹ in VOA Special English.

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I'm Doug Johnson. This week:

We tell about a special exhibit of Amish quilts in Washington D.C.,

And answer a listener question from Russia about musician Scott Joplin.

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Amish Quilt Exhibit

HOST:

The Textile Museum in Washington, D.C., recently opened a show of handmade cloth bed coverings called quilts. The exhibit is called "Constructed Color: Amish Quilts." It includes thirty colorful quilts made by different groups of Amish people in the United States. Visitors can enjoy the striking artistry of these quilts as well as the extraordinary skill of the women who made them. Barbara Klein tells us more.

BARBARA KLEIN:

When you enter the exhibit, the many quilts hanging on the wall almost look like paintings by modern artists. The designs are very bold and geometric with large single color areas. But many of the quilt designs are traditional, dating back to the middle of the eighteenth century.

This is when Amish groups began coming to the United States to escape religious oppression in Europe. The first Amish settlement in America was in Lancaster County in the eastern state of Pennsylvania. The Amish also settled in other areas of North America. Amish communities are known for their strong Christian² beliefs. As part of these beliefs, many Amish people reject modern technologies such as cars and electricity in order to live simpler lives, often based on farming.
　
An Amish "Center Diamond" quilt that dates between 1920 and 1940. It was probably made in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

The thirty quilts in this exhibit represent works from three different Amish communities: Lancaster County and Mifflin County in Pennsylvania and the Midwestern states of Ohio and Indiana.

Each settlement is known for a special style of quilt. For example, Amish quilts from Lancaster County are often made up of larger pieces of cloth in very bright colors. The exhibit has several examples of the "Center Diamond" pattern quilt. One "Center Diamond" quilt has a deep blue diamond with a green border inside a red square on a purple background. The colors are so intense it is hard to believe this quilt is about eighty years old.

Amish quilts from Midwestern states often have blue or black backgrounds with repeated designs. An example in the exhibit is the "Tumbling Blocks" quilt made of gray, red and black pieces of cloth. The pattern is so three-dimensional it almost seems to come off the wall.

These works are beautiful representations of Amish history and community. They show both the great technical skill of Amish women quilters and their ability to create traditional patterns in new and inventive ways.

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Scott Joplin

HOST:

Our listener question this week comes from Russia. Victor wants to know about musician and composer Scott Joplin. Our listener notes that the Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES begins with Joplin's "Bethena: A Concert Waltz."

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Scott Joplin

Scott Joplin is famous for writing energetic dance music that earned him the title "King of Ragtime³." The irregular rhythm of this music was described as "ragged⁴ time," a term that was later shortened to "ragtime." During Joplin's lifetime ragtime was often played in clubs and drinking places. He helped turn this special kind of music into an American art form.

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Scott Joplin's music may be very well known, but much about his life remains⁵ a mystery.

Experts believe he was born in eighteen sixty-seven or eighteen sixty-eight. He was born in the state of Texas, probably near the border with Arkansas. He spent part of his childhood in the town of Texarkana.

Scott Joplin's father was a freed slave who worked for the railroad. His mother cleaned people's homes. She received permission for young Scott to play the piano in one of those homes. A German-born music teacher named Julius Weiss recognized the young boy's skill and gave him free music lessons. Scott's early training was in classical music.

Experts believe Scott Joplin left home in the eighteen eighties to travel through the Midwestern United States. In his twenties, he moved to Sedalia, Missouri. There, he played with different bands. They included a dance band called the Queen City Cornet Band and a singing group called the Texas Medley⁶ Quartette. When he was not traveling to perform, Joplin worked as a piano player in social clubs and took music classes.

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A cover sheet for "The Maple⁷ Leaf Rag"

In eighteen ninety-nine, Scott Joplin published this song, "The Maple Leaf Rag." It soon became one of the most popular examples of ragtime music. Joplin earned money from sales of this song for the rest of his life.

In nineteen-oh-one, Joplin moved to Saint Louis, Missouri, with his wife, Belle⁸. Here is "A Breeze from Alabama," published the next year. It is music for a dance called the two-step.

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Over the next fifteen years, Scott Joplin kept writing ragtime music as well as two operas, a symphony, a musical and other works. However, many of these were never published and have been lost.

Here is "The Chrysanthemum," which Joplin wrote for the woman who would become his second wife, Freddie.

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Scott Joplin died in nineteen seventeen. He left the world sixty musical pieces.

In nineteen seventy-six, the composer received a Pulitzer Prize in recognition of his important role in American music. We leave you with one of Scott Joplin's later compositions, "Magnetic Rag."

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HOST:

I'm Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed our program today.

It was written and produced by Dana Demange. For transcripts⁹, MP3s and podcasts of our programs, go to voaspecialenglish.com.

Send your questions about American life to [email protected]. Please include your full name and where you live.

Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA's radio magazine in Special English.

1 mosaic   

n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的

参考例句：

• The sky this morning is a mosaic of blue and white.今天早上的天空是幅蓝白相间的画面。
• The image mosaic is a troublesome work.图象镶嵌是个麻烦的工作。

2 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

3 ragtime   

n.拉格泰姆音乐

参考例句：

• The most popular music back then was called ragtime.那时最流行的音乐叫拉格泰姆音乐。
• African-American piano player Scott Joplin wrote many ragtime songs.非裔美国钢琴家ScottJoplin写了许多拉格泰姆歌曲。

4 ragged   

adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的

参考例句：

• A ragged shout went up from the small crowd.这一小群人发出了刺耳的喊叫。
• Ragged clothing infers poverty.破衣烂衫意味着贫穷。

5 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

6 medley   

n.混合

参考例句：

• Today's sports meeting doesn't seem to include medley relay swimming.现在的运动会好象还没有混合接力泳这个比赛项目。
• China won the Men's 200 metres Individual Medley.中国赢得了男子200米个人混合泳比赛。

7 maple   

n.槭树，枫树，槭木

参考例句：

• Maple sugar is made from the sap of maple trees.枫糖是由枫树的树液制成的。
• The maple leaves are tinge with autumn red.枫叶染上了秋天的红色。

8 belle   

n.靓女

参考例句：

• She was the belle of her Sunday School class.在主日学校她是她们班的班花。
• She was the belle of the ball.她是那个舞会中的美女。

9 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句